Estonian-founded investment platform Lightyear has raised US$23 million in a Series B funding round led by NordicNinja, with participation from Superangel, Specialist VC, Lightspeed, Metaplanet, Skaala, and individual investors including Markus Villig of Bolt and Lars Trunin of Wise.
This round brings the company’s total funding to date to US$58 million.
Established in 2020 by Martin Sokk and Mihkel Aamer, Lightyear was founded in response to the challenges of investing across Europe.
The investment landscape remains fragmented, shaped by differing regulatory regimes, tax systems, currencies, and languages.
Recognising the limitations this imposed on retail investors, the founders set out to create a unified platform that would operate across national boundaries.
Lightyear is now present in 25 countries and supports 10 languages.
The company has reached over US$1 billion in customer assets, a figure achieved within three years of launch.
This milestone reflects both the pace of its expansion and a broader demand among European investors for tools that are accessible, multilingual, and cost-efficient.
Since its last funding round in 2022, Lightyear has introduced several new investment products for both individuals and businesses.
These include ISA accounts approved by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority, as well as fractionalised investments in European stocks and funds.
The company has also integrated with regional exchanges such as Nasdaq Baltic and supported regulatory changes in markets like Estonia, which now allow tax wrappers to be offered by investment firms.
In Hungary, it launched a version of the TBSZ account, designed for tax-advantaged investing.
While the platform has grown considerably, the company acknowledges that the investment culture across much of Europe remains underdeveloped.
In the European Union, households collectively hold close to €11 trillion in cash. In the UK, a significant majority of those with more than £10,000 in investable assets continue to hold the bulk of it in cash.
The company sees this as a persistent barrier to wealth generation and is working to address it.
To help investors make more informed decisions, Lightyear is introducing three new tools powered by artificial intelligence.
These features provide explanations for price movements, summaries of both the bullish and bearish cases for a particular stock, and short-form updates on market trends and macroeconomic events.
The company has stated that these tools will be available to all users without requiring a subscription.
Lightyear’s focus remains on long-term development.
It aims to build an investment platform that is suitable for investors across the continent, with localisation that goes beyond translation and full integration with national tax systems.
The company will continue expanding into new markets and developing products that reflect the complexity of investing in Europe without compromising on clarity or functionality.
Featured image credit: Lightyear
